Episode 53: Steel and rock
Just before Niko left the battlefield, Kukui, the Elite 4, Hau, and another familiar man with a Pikachu all joined him in the middle of the field, just like when he won the Lumiose Conference.
"Niko!" Kukui said, holding a trophy with four symbols emblazoned on it. "When I met you I figured you'd make it far, but you exceeded my own expectations! Congrats!"
"Thanks, Kukui," Niko said, taking the trophy and looking at Incineroar, who grinned.
"Nice to see you again," Ash said, holding out a gloved hand. Niko clasped it, looking directly at him with a smile.
"Likewise."
"I see you've raised an Incineroar. It's pretty strong. I'd love to battle it someday," Ash said, waving to Niko's Heel Pokémon, who nodded back. "And congrats again."
"Niko," Hau said, finally stepping forward. "As Champion of Alola, I offer you an opportunity to challenge the Alola Elite 4 if you wish. Do you accept this offer?" Niko turned to Incineroar and, already knowing his answer, nodded. "Excellent. The first battle will be tomorrow morning. All Elite 4 battles will be tomorrow in quick succession, with only a couple of hours between them. Your first opponent will be Molayne," he said, motioning to the lanky, yellow-and-orange haired man Niko met at Hokulani Observatory.
"I look forward to our match," he said, looking down at Niko and clasping his hand as well.
"Same here."
"Each match will be 4-on-4, so you can prepare accordingly," Hau explained. "We will see you then."
"So you accepted the offer?" Warren asked in between bites of a hamburger. "To challenge the Elite 4?"
"Yeah. Molayne is my first opponent," Niko said. "I don't know what he uses, though…"
"Steel types," JJ said, pulling out a tablet and looking it up. "They don't say what Pokémon the Elite 4 own, but only their type specialty. Molayne uses steel types, Olivia uses rock, Acerola uses Ghost, and Kahili uses flying types."
"Luckily, I've battled two of those people before, shouldn't be too difficult," Niko said.
"They probably use different Pokémon, to be honest," Charlotte said, "Except maybe Kahili, since she's a captain or a Kahuna."
"But she's tough," Niko said, remembering when he fought her Toucannon to try and impress Ferdinand Diamond—even though he didn't want to. "Anyway, I think I have an idea of who I want to use in this battle."
"Yeah? Probably fire types, right?" Jake asked, watching his brother nod in response. "You've got some really impressive fire types, too. Molayne doesn't know what's gonna hit him."
"He's a smart guy. I actually think he does know," Charlotte added with no disrespect to Niko. "But Niko isn't to be messed with. He didn't use his reserves against me and still won."
"But it was a close match," Niko explained. "If certain Pokémon were used at different times the tide could've changed."
"It didn't though, and you won," Charlotte said, "deservedly so."
Niko shook his head, smiling the entire time. This is why he loved Charlotte so much.
The Stadium at Mount Lanakila wasn't as full as the day before, but Niko didn't really care too much. All that mattered was the person standing across from him on the battlefield, which was made entirely of steel. Four columns adorned each corner and seemed to produce electricity. There was a wall only a few feet tall that bordered the ends of the battlefield. And on the other end stood the first member of the Elite 4—Molayne.
"Go Niko!" Warren shouted from the seats just behind his friend. Charlotte, Daisy, Emily, Jake, JJ, Maizie, Brittany, and Kaila all joined him. Poipole also floated around in the area around them, as it had during many of Niko's other league battles.
"Welcome, one and all, to the Alola Champion's League!" Kukui declared. "The winner of the Lanakila Conference, Niko, will face off against each member of the Alola Elite 4 in succession. Upon defeating a member, he will proceed to the following one a couple of hours later. Should he defeat all four members, he will face Champion Hau tomorrow afternoon in the Champion's Match."
The league official judging the match explained the rules—a 4-vs-4 match, first to defeat their opponent's entire team will be declared the winner.
Niko felt comfortable. He had faced off against Elite 4 members before—mostly losing, but he's also managed to win some. This was also a shorter battle, which might work to his advantage. He wasn't entirely certain of that, though.
"You may begin!"
"Klefki, I choose you!" Molayne said, throwing out a pokéball containing a small set of keys floating in the air. "Allow me to say again, Niko, that I am incredibly honored to be battling you. You showed promise in the Hokulani trial—on both attempts—so this will be a fun match, I think."
"I agree. Talonflame, you're up!" Niko shouted, summoning his Scorching Pokémon. "Start off with flame charge, let's go!"
"Klefki, use thunder wave," Molayne said calmly. Klefki spun its keys around in a circular motion, generating electricity and firing it at Talonflame in a concentrated blast. Talonflame managed to swiftly move out of the way before attempting to crash into the Key Ring Pokémon, who also dodged due to its small size.
Let's try something different, Niko thought in reference to how he used to fight with Talonflame. "Use flame charge again!" He shouted. Talonflame continued using the move to speed up, generating more heat as she did so. Klefki used flash cannon, which only seemed to miss Talonflame. Eventually, the Scorching Pokémon was doing exactly what Niko wanted. "Now, in a tight circle around Klefki!" he commanded. Talonflame spun around, generating a fiery tornado around his opponent. Klefki once again tried to use flash cannon, but to no avail. "And…flare blitz!"
Talonflame released herself from the tornado and shot directly into the eye of it, slamming into Klefki and crashing into the steel-coated ground with enough force to bend it slightly.
"Klefki is unable to battle, Talonflame is the winner! Member Molayne will now use his second Pokémon!"
"Niko's off to a great start," Warren said, nodding with surprise.
"That strategy won't always work, though," Jake said. "But I'm sure he knows that."
"Solid strategy, Niko. However, I don't think it'll get you very far with this one. Metagross, I choose you!"
"Alright Talonflame. We're fast enough now, we just need to change strategy a bit," Niko said. Talonflame didn't know any ranged moves, which might make this hard, because Metagross was strong in both ranged and close-combat moves. "Use flare blitz!"
"Metagross, psychic!" Molayne shouted, now exerting some semblance of passion. Talonflame was quickly taken control of and thrust into the ground forcefully. "And use meteor mash!"
Metagross retracted its four legs before floating towards its downed opponent and, swiftly, slammed the front two on Talonflame, crushing her into the steel battlefield.
"Hammer arm!" Molayne continued. Metagross finished pummeling Talonflame with a quick hammer arm before leaving it be for a moment. The Scorching Pokémon slowly got back up, albeit incredibly exhausted by this point.
"Flame charge!" Niko shouted. Talonflame shot forward to strike at Metagross, who simply used psychic to throw her back into the ground. This time, Talonflame didn't get back up.
"Talonflame is unable to battle, Metagross is the winner! Niko will now use his second Pokémon!" the judge declared.
"Return. You did well, buddy. Please rest. Magmortar, I choose you!" he shouted, summoning the Blast Pokémon. In the stands, Kaila perked up at seeing the large, fiery Pokémon. "Use sunny day!"
Suddenly, the sky brightened up, and the battlefield started to get a little warmer. Metagross showed no discomfort by this, and simply glared at its new opponent. "Metagross, use hammer arm!"
"Block it with fire punch!" Niko shouted. Magmortar waited until Metagross was upon him before using his arm-cannon to block the heavy, fast-moving hammer arm. "With your other arm, use flamethrower!" he continued. Magmortar pointed his right arm-cannon at Metagross and released a jet of flames from it, sending the Iron Leg Pokémon rocketing backwards. "And now use lava plume!"
Magmortar, now with both arms, fired small spheres of lava at Metagross, melting away the ground in the process. The Iron Leg Pokémon stood there, now in discomfort from the heat. Niko could see Molayne trying to consider a way around this. Then it looked like a lightbulb lit up in his mind, as he reached into his pocket to grab something.
"Metagross!" he said, inserting a gray Z-crystal into his Z-ring. "Use Corkscrew Crash!"
Z-energy transferred to the Iron Leg Pokémon, who shot up into the air and, pointing all of its legs downwards, began to spiral towards Magmortar at an unbelievable speed. It crashed into its opponent before the Blast Pokémon could properly react. Magmortar fell onto his back, entirely exposed.
"Hammer arm!" Molayne shouted. Metagross slammed a glowing leg on top of Magmortar, who held it in place with his arm-cannons. "Drop them using psychic!" the Elite 4 member shouted. Suddenly, Magmortar's arms fell to his sides, allowing the hammer arm to crash down onto his chest with enough force to defeat him.
"Magmortar is unable to battle, Metagross is the winner!" the judge declared. "Niko will now use his third Pokémon!"
"Well, this doesn't look so good," JJ said. "But Niko had stronger fire types than just Magmortar."
"Magmortar, return. You did your best and helped set up for the others. Thanks, buddy. Numel, I choose you!"
"There he is," JJ said with a smirk.
"A Numel, eh?" Molayne said curiously. "Interesting choice. You're full of surprises, Niko. Metagross, use psychic!"
"Earth power, Numel," Niko said calmly. The Numb Pokémon slammed his front feet onto the ground, causing vibrations to echo throughout the field before hitting Metagross just underneath it, erupting and sending the Iron Leg Pokémon into the air. Numel then found himself subject to the psychic and was thrown about. "Flamethrower!"
"Block it with psychic!" Molayne commanded. The Iron Leg Pokémon's eyes began to glow as it took control of the flames and extinguished them successfully. "Now use meteor mash!"
"Molayne," Niko said as Metagross was charging at Numel, "you're a smart guy, but this move is not. Numel, use flame burst!"
Aided by sunny day, Numel fired a small fireball from his mouth, striking Metagross in the eye. He then, on Niko's command, use earth power a second time, striking at Metagross from underneath. To finish it off, Niko used flamethrower that, aided by Numel's now-boiling rage, defeated the Iron Leg Pokémon.
"Metagross is unable to battle, Numel is the winner! Member Molayne will now use his third Pokémon!" the judge declared.
"Metagross, return. You're right, Niko. My mistake. Sometimes even Elite 4 members mess up. Bisharp, I choose you! Use night slash!"
The Sword Blade Pokémon that Niko was familiar with sped across the field, its right sword-arm glowing a dark purple. Before they knew it, Bisharp was upon Numel, striking as his side before turning around and striking at the other side. Numel grunted before emitting a flamethrower instinctively, which successfully hit Bisharp and knocked it to the ground.
"Poison jab!" Molayne commanded.
"Numel, earth power!" Niko shouted. Numel struck the ground, causing vibrations under the field to trip up his opponent. It didn't seem to succeed, as Bisharp simply leapt into the air, spun around, and landed by thrusting its sword-arm into the hole on Numel's back. "Also a bad idea…" he said with a smirk. "Flame burst!"
Numel fired a fireball from inside his hump and out through the top, causing Bisharp to rocket directly upwards. Numel then moved to the side, albeit slowly, and released a flamethrower at the Sword Blade Pokémon, dousing it in fire and leaving a relatively nasty burn on it.
Fortunately for Molayne, the Pokémon could continue fighting. Bisharp charged at Numel again, now using night slash again. He managed to succeed and dodged a reactionary flame burst. Then Numel, unexpectedly, also charged at Bisharp. Niko knew this side of the Numb Pokémon. When he got angry, he got angry.
"Numel, go!" Niko shouted excitedly. The fire type rammed into Bisharp, taking a poison jab to the side in the process. Then, at close-range and aided by the sunlight, he released a jet of blue flames that shot Bisharp across the field. The Sword Blade Pokémon collapsed in front of Molayne in defeat.
"Bisharp is unable to battle, Numel is the winner! Member Molayne will now use his fourth and final Pokémon!"
"Niko is creaming this guy," Brittany said in awe. Niko had improved a lot since Kalos. As did his Pokémon.
"Well done, Niko. That Numel of yours has proven me wrong. Now, you might find this Pokémon to be just as easy. Or not. Magnezone, I choose you!"
"Numel, you ready to continue?" Niko asked. The Numb Pokémon nodded, turning to his trainer. He looked more exhausted now. I guess the rage really gets to him after a while. That blue fire probably expends a lot of energy.
"Flash cannon!" Molayne commanded. Magnezone fired a bright, flashing gray light at Numel, causing him to look away briefly before the attack struck him. Numel groaned, the attack on top of the lack of energy was starting to get to him. "And tri attack!"
Three colored spheres appeared in front of the floating Magnezone—one blue, one yellow, and one red—before they connected to form a triangle and fired at Numel. He groaned again, using flamethrower to block the attack, but was largely unsuccessful. Magnezone repeated the attack, firing it just as quickly, and forced Numel to the ground in defeat.
"What the hell?" Warren asked. "That quickly?"
"The blue fire seems to exhaust Numel because it exerts more energy," Jake commented, explaining what Niko was thinking on the battlefield.
"Numel is unable to battle, Magnezone is the winner! Niko will now use his final Pokémon!"
"Lampent, you're up!" Niko shouted. "Use will-o-wisp!"
"I know this trick, Niko. Thunderbolt on the flames!" Molayne commanded. Magnezone conjured a bolt of electricity that struck the small blue fireballs, extinguishing them quickly. However, a flame burst came firing from behind them unexpectedly, hitting Magnezone and knocking it backwards, spinning as it took the hit.
"Lampent, use will-o-wisp again!" Niko commanded, thrusting his hand forward. Lampent moved her arms around a bit, whipping up blue fireballs and threw them at the disoriented Magnezone. A nasty burn mark set in on the front of Magnezone's metallic body. It fired a flash cannon that seemed to blind Lampent momentarily before landing a thunderbolt on top of the Lamp Pokémon. "Lampent!"
The ghost type slowly fell to the ground, smoke emitting from the top of her head. She looked up at Magnezone, who looked ready to end her. Then, she looked back at Niko, who smiled and nodded.
Lampent's body began to steam, emitting a loud hissing sound as a massive jet of blue flames shot out of the top of her head and at an angle, striking Magnezone directly and engulfing it. The Magnet Area Pokémon was rocketed high into the air before crashing down onto the ground, leaving a massive dent in the battlefield.
"Magnezone is unable to battle, Lampent is the winner! The victory goes to Niko from Pallet Town!" the judge declared.
"Yes!" Niko shouted, running to an exhausted Lampent and hugging her. "Inferno always works. I'm very proud of you!"
"Congrats, Niko," Molayne said, returning Magnezone and approaching his victorious opponent. "Every battle I try to learn something. And sometimes I need to re-learn other things. Today, I re-learned to now underestimate unevolved Pokémon. Especially unevolved fire types," he held out his hand. "Best of luck against the others."
"Thanks," Niko said, smiling while holding Lampent in his other arm.
"Niko!" Kukui shouted from the Champion's Box. "Your next battle will be against Olivia in two hours. Be ready for another four-vs-four battle!"
Niko looked up to the box and nodded. He would be.
"Welcome to the second round of the Champion's League. I'm your host, Kukui, and for this battle we have the champion of the Lanakila Conference, Niko from Pallet Town, now up against the second member of the Elite 4—Akala Island Kahuna Olivia. It will be a four-on-four battle. Niko had taken time to rest up and change his Pokémon as necessary. This should be an exciting battle with plenty of awesome moves to be seen!"
The battlefield changed, Niko noticed, from a steel-coated one to an ordinary rocky terrain, with rocks littered everywhere. He felt just as comfortable against Olivia—he had defeated her before, and that was without his reserves. He could do it again.
"Niko!" the Kahuna shouted as she waved to him, accidentally dropping her four pokéballs onto the ground. "Oops! Sorry," she said, bending over to pick them up again. "I hate when that happens…I guess I need a new belt. Anyway! I'm excited to battle you again. But I warn you, I'm not the same trainer you battled at the Ruins of Life."
"I know you're not," Niko said with a smirk. "I'm ready for this."
"Good," Olivia said calmly. The judge explained the rules of the match and, within minutes, the two were off. "Cradily, I choose you!"
"Chesnaught you're up!" Niko shouted. "Let's start off with hammer arm!" he shouted. During his time away, Pangoro had taught his former teammate a new move. The Spiny Armor Pokémon charged down the field, his arm glowing white.
"Sludge wave!" Olivia commanded. Cradily opened its mouth(?) and fired a wave of poisonous liquid in every direction. In response, Chesnaught slid to the ground and spun around, using his shell to protect him. Once the sludge had passed him by, he got back up and continued. "Smart move, Niko. Earth power!"
"Chesnaught, jump!" Niko shouted when a vibration surged underground. Chesnaught, still running, waited for it to burst before using the momentum to carry him into the air. In one fell swoop he landed his arm on top of Cradily, slamming its head into the ground. Cradily slowly got back up, now furious.
"Seed bomb!" Olivia and Niko shouted simultaneously. The two Pokémon fired small, glowing green spheres at one another, causing a miniature explosion and knocked Chesnaught backwards. "Stone edge!" Olivia continued.
"Slam it with hammer arm!" Niko commanded. Chesnaught's arm started illuminating white once more as he threw it against the stone edge, shattering the attack. "Use it on Cradily now!"
"Sludge wave!" Olivia commanded, only she waited for Chesnaught to get closer before issuing the command. The Barnacle Pokémon spewed sludge directly at Chesnaught, hitting him in the chest and knocking him onto his back, lodging his spikes into the ground. "Earth power!"
Cradily mercilessly sent vibrations into the ground and launched Chesnaught into the air. When he landed, the Spiny Armor Pokémon landed on his side. He got up just before Cradily continued with stone edge and, while the rock type tried to strike with the move, slammed a powerful hammer arm into the side of Cradily's head, knocking the Barnacle Pokémon to the ground.
It came at a cost, though—Chesnaught was now poisoned.
"Cradily is unable to battle, Chesnaught is the winner!" the judge declared. "Member Olivia will now use her second Pokémon!"
"Armaldo, I choose you!" she said, summoning another familiar Pokémon. "Use X-scissor!"
Chesnaught, due to the poison, was more slow-moving than usual, and couldn't evade Armaldo's attack, which shot the Spiny Armor Pokémon into a nearby rock. The Plate Pokémon then charged again, this time with crush claw. He struck Chesnaught in the stomach, eliciting a loud groan from the grass type.
"Finish it off with X-scissor!"
"Chesnaught, spiky shield!" Niko shouted. Chesnaught attempted to spin around to use his shield, but was slow to do so, and was hit in the right side by X-scissor. He collapsed forward in defeat.
"Chesnaught is unable to battle, Armaldo is the winner! Niko will now use his second Pokémon!"
"Prinplup, you're up!" Niko shouted, summoning the Penguin Pokémon. "Let's win this, buddy. Use water pulse!"
"Stone edge!" Olivia shouted passionately. Armaldo slammed its tail into the ground, causing pointed stones to erupt in quick succession towards Prinplup, rendering the water pulse useless. In response, Prinplup used metal claw to shatter the rocks and instead charge at the fossilized Pokémon.
"Metal claw!" Niko commanded. Prinplup shot forward, his claws glowing bright gray as he attempted to strike at the Plate Pokémon. In response, Armaldo met Prinplup in the center of the field with crush claw. The two Pokémon stood there, holding onto each one to avoid taking damage from the other attack. Niko, however, had a way of ending this stalemate. "Hydro pump!"
Prinplup released a powerful, high-pressured jet of water directly at Armaldo's face, shooting it backwards where it crashed into a rock close to Olivia.
"Now, drill peck!" Niko commanded. His beak extending, Prinplup charged at Armaldo, who used stone edge to quickly halt the Penguin Pokémon in his tracks, as Prinplup slammed into the closest one on accident and fell to the ground.
"X-scissor!" Olivia said. Armaldo crossed its arms, creating a bright red "X" mark, and fired it at Prinplup, dragging him backwards on the rocky terrain. "And use crush claw!"
"Hydro pump!" Niko roared. Prinplup, still on the ground, hit Armaldo in mid-air with the blast of water, launching his opponent even higher. When Armaldo crashed into the ground, it was over.
"Armaldo is unable to battle, Prinplup is the winner! Olivia will now use her third Pokémon!"
"Probopass, I choose you!" Olivia commanded, summoning a large Pokémon that resembled an Easter Island head, only with a mustache. "Use earth power!"
"Prinplup, water pulse!" Niko commanded. The Penguin Pokémon charged at Probopass. He was somewhat exhausted from the battle with Armaldo but wasn't about to give up just yet. He conjured a pulsating orb of water and fired it at Probopass, only for him to get hit by an underground vibration in the process. "Hydro pump!"
"Dazzling gleam!" Olivia commanded. A bright pink light enveloped the area around them, knocking Prinplup back and cancelling his move. "And use power gem now!"
"Prinplup!" Niko shouted. The Penguin Pokémon slowly got back up, only to be stricken with fast-moving pink gems. He collapsed forward in defeat.
"Prinplup is unable to battle, Probopass is the winner! Niko will now use his third Pokémon!" the judge declared.
"Torterra, you're up!" Niko roared, summoning the Continent Pokémon. "Use earthquake!"
"Dazzling gleam!" Olivia commanded. While the earth aggressively shook, Probopass once again released a bright pink light from its body, forcing Torterra to close his eyes. Suddenly he felt the earth rumble underneath him—earth power struck him, but he hardly seemed to feel it.
"Leaf storm!" Niko commanded. This attack—a vortex of leaves—was quickly met with power gem, which managed to minimize the power of the leaves by blocking some of them that were in the path of Probopass' attack. "Earthquake again!"
"Earth power!" Olivia commanded. Probopass quickly slammed its body into the ground, causing the battlefield to shake underneath it, just before Torterra slammed his feet onto the ground. Just like before, he felt a quick bump slightly move him, but it hardly seemed to have an effect on him. "And dazzling gleam!"
As soon as Torterra took the hit, Niko thought of something else. He knew what his last Pokémon would be, should Torterra fall. He also had a solid idea of who Olivia's last Pokémon would be. Given this, he knew he could win, and this next move could determine the entire outcome of the match.
He lifted his Z-ring and inserted Groundium-Z. "Torterra," he said, catching the attention of the Continent Pokémon. "You want to give this a shot?" Without seeing it, Torterra stomped his feet on the ground—yes, he did. "Alright, then! Use Tectonic Rage!"
"Probopass, flash cannon!" Olivia shouted, almost desperately. Torterra dug into the ground, disappearing completely. Olivia knew how this move worked—it'd be hard to avoid. But she had to try. As soon as Torterra erupted from underground to hit Probopass, the Compass Pokémon unleashed dazzling gleam, which knocked Torterra backwards. However, the damage to her Pokémon was done, and the Compass Pokémon fell backward in defeat.
"Probopass is unable to battle, Torterra is the winner! Olivia will now use her fourth and final Pokémon!"
"Wow…" Warren said with surprise. "He's making quick work of her!"
Charlotte smiled. "Yeah he is."
Niko could tell Torterra was exhausted. He had practiced the poses for Z-moves—only three at that—but actually using the move for the first time took a toll on him. This next battle was going to be tough. "Torterra, I know you're tired. We can win this either way, but do you want to continue?"
Torterra thought about it for a moment and nodded. Niko smiled.
"Lycanroc, I choose you!" Olivia shouted, summoning the Wolf Pokémon that Niko was familiar with. "Use stone edge!"
"Torterra, leaf storm!" Niko commanded. The vortex of leaves was weaker than before, and barely made it through the pointed stones blocking its way. The stones then struck Torterra's underbelly, causing him to grunt in a low tone as he tried to keep himself together.
"Accelerock!" Olivia commanded. Swiftly, the midday form of Lycanroc charged at his opponent, striking Torterra just before taking an energy ball to the side and knocking it to the ground. "Use rock slide!"
"Earthquake!" Niko commanded. Lycanroc leapt into the air just before the ground shook aggressively, releasing nearly a dozen rocks and pummeling Torterra with them. To finish, Lycanroc charged down at Torterra from midair with accelerock, striking the Continent Pokémon on his shell.
"Torterra is unable to battle, Lycanroc is the winner! Niko will now use his final Pokémon!" the judge declared.
"I'm proud of you, Torterra. It takes courage to continue like that. Aggron, you're up!"
Warren nodded. "That's a really good choice," he said, noticing a worried look on Charlotte's face. "If he mega evolves, he'll be fine. He can win this battle without it, too."
"I know, I just don't like it when he does, that's all," she said, severely disliking Niko's strange connection to mega evolution energy.
"Aggron, mega evolve!" Niko said almost immediately. The Iron Armor Pokémon, now enveloped by the energy from Niko's Key Stone, transformed into a massive hunk of sentient metal. Mega Aggron roared at Lycanroc and, in response, Olivia whipped out her Z-ring.
"I'm sure you'll remember this, Niko," Olivia said. "Lycanroc, use Continental Crush!"
Lycanroc leapt into the air, gathering rocks from all over the battlefield to create a massive stone that it eventually threw at Mega Aggron.
"Automotize!" Niko said, which made his friends and family tilt their heads in confusion. Mega Aggron took the attack, but hardly seemed effected by it. "Now, iron head!"
Mega Aggron charged forward, the plates covering his head bursting with metallic energy. He struck Lycanroc, who stayed still to use stone edge, and knocked the Wolf Pokémon backwards.
"And iron tail!" Niko commanded. Mega Aggron spun around and slammed his tail into Lycanroc, rocketing it into a nearby rock. "Automotize again!"
"Lycanroc, accelerock!" Olivia shouted. The Wolf Pokémon burst forward to strike Mega Aggron from the side. The Iron Armor Pokémon took the hit but hardly seemed effected by it and grabbed Lycanroc by the paw.
"Iron head!" Niko roared. Aggron slammed it head against Lycanroc's, throwing it into the ground. In a surprisingly swift set of moves, Mega Aggron defeated Olivia's ace Pokémon.
"Lycanroc is unable to battle, Aggron is the winner!" the judge declared, "The winner is Niko from Pallet Town!"
"And Niko is again the winner, folks!" Kukui shouted excitedly. "At this rate, he might make it all the way to the Champion," he said with a teasing wink to Hau, who responded with an eager smile. "Niko, the next battle will be against Acerola in a couple of hours. Take a rest, and we'll see you then!"
Aggron reverted to his normal form as he turned to run and hug Niko. "You did great, buddy. I've never seen that kind of energy from you. Well, I've never felt it, that is," he said, slightly exhausted, but only from using the Key Stone—not from any of the hits Mega Aggron took. Olivia and her defeated Lycanroc walked up to Niko. She held out a hand.
"You did amazing, Niko. If I had money to bet, I'd put you down as the next Champion of Alola."
"Thanks, Olivia. I appreciate that."
"Good luck against Acerola. She's tough, you'll want to be on your toes with her."
"I will. Thanks!" he said as the Kahuna and Elite 4 member turned to leave the battlefield.
"Two down, two to go, Niko!" Warren said during lunch.
"And the next two will be the toughest," Niko said quietly.
"Do you know who you want to use against Acerola?" Charlotte asked.
"I have an idea. I don't have too many Pokémon that can effectively take on ghost types, so I'm going to get creative I think."
"Raw power?" JJ asked, getting a nod from his friend. "Gotcha. I think you can win with that. You have a lot of Pokémon with raw strength on their side."
"Nice use of the Z-move against Probopass," Kaila said. "Also, your Aggron is so adorable and strong! I want one!"
Niko laughed. He had never once considered the massive Iron Armor Pokémon as "cute," but he nodded and mentioned that Kaila should visit the Hoenn region, where he caught his. Kaila's eyes lit up again, and Niko, Brittany, JJ, and Jake told her stories of their adventures in Hoenn to pass the time before Niko's third match of the day.
Author's Note: I hope you enjoyed this episode! The battles went by sort of quickly, but that's okay I think.
A close friend of mine is in the middle of writing a Fantasy story on the sister site to this one. If you're at all interested in fantasy stories, I highly recommend it. It's incomplete, but the author is looking for feedback to help them continue. The story is called FireHeart, and here is the link for the author's page:
u/1107346/BlitzGirl
Enjoy!
